The former Michigan State Fairgrounds site that stopped hosting the State Fair more than a decade ago is one step closer to becoming the site of an Amazon distribution center.
Detroit City Council members approved the $400 million development proposal on Tuesday (October 20), which paves the way for construction to potentially start in the coming weeks, the Detroit Free Press reported.
Council members expressed some mixed feelings about the proposal to construct a 3.8-million-square-foot center for the retail and delivery giant. Some, for example, worried that Detroiters wouldn’t be the ones to benefit from the jobs the development will create.
The Amazon distribution center is expected to bring more than 1,200 jobs to the area, paying $15 an hour at minimum. Many citizens also weighed in on the proposal, including excitement for new jobs coming to the area and concerns about the project.
Still, others — including citizens and elected officials — were in favor of the plans.
Mayor Mike Duggan told the Free Press in an email that “attracting large employment centers like this is a major part of our strategy to lift more Detroit families out of poverty and rebuild our city's middle class.”
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